Device for preventing wire entanglement



1966 H. M. HOLLINGSWORTH, JR.. ETAL 3,265,023

DEVICE FOR PREVENTING WIRE ENTANGLEMENT 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 22, 1961 'LAUNCHING DIRECTION TO LAUNCHING VESSEL WIRE DISPENSER I} TO LAUNCHING VESSEL '6 U WIRE DISPENSER TO TOR PEDO WIRE DISPENSER TO TORPEDO INVENTORS HERBERT M. HOLLINGSWORTH JR.

WIRE DISPENSER STEPHEN MEHALKO BY EDWARD L. STENE 7 ATTORNEYS H. M. HOLLINGSWORTH, JR.. ETAL 3,265,023

Aug. 9, 1966 DEVICE FOR PREVENTING WIRE ENTANGLEMENT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 22, 1961 INVENTORS HERBERT M. HOLLINGSWORTH JR STEPHEN MEHALKO BY EDWARD STENE a ATTORNEYS United States atent 3,265,023 DEVICE FOR PREVENTING WERE ENTANGLEMENT Herbert M. Holiingsworth, Jan, Annapolis, Stephen Mehalko, Baltimore, and Edward L. Stene, Linthicnrn Heights, Md, assignors, by mesne assignments, to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy Filed Nov. 22, 1961, Ser. No. 154,373 19 Claims. (Cl. 114-243) The present invention relates to a device for preventing wire entanglement and more particularly to a device for preventing the entanglement of a wire connected to a launching vessel and a launched vehicle which is to be paid out upon launching the vehicle.

Many different types of torpedoes depend upon guidance and control from a launching vessel for a period of time after their launch. This control is maintained by a wire connected between the torpedo and the launching vessel, the wire normally being paid out by a wire dispenser in the torpedo as well as in the launching vessel. Because of the high-power propulsion systems and large size of present-day torpedoes considerable water turbulence and velocities occur in the torpedo tube so as to cause tremendous erratic forces upon the'launching wire. This causes the wire to become entangled with itself as well as the aft end of the torpedo. Complicating this problem is the necessity of making a waterproof splice between the wire from the torpedo dispenser and the wire from the launching vessel dispenser, this splice giving a diificult-to-handle torsional set to the wire. The problem becomes further complicated in that there is a requirement that substantially all restraint must be removed from the payout of the wire from the launching vessel dispenser after a successful launch has been achieved so as to enable maximum maneuverability of the torpedo. The present invention has enabled the torpedo to be launched without entanglement of the guidance wire by providing a device which will retain a certain length of the wire and release this length progressively upon the launching of the torpedo. While the device in the preferred embodiment includes a plurality of retainers, it is to be understood that the invention resides in each and every one of the retainers taken singly or in various combinations. A first retainer is a box having a fiat chamber for conforming the wire into a loop which is curved away from the launching direction of the vehicle and the box having one open end for the payout of the wire from the loop. Further, this box has a lid and provision for splicing the wires that extend from the torpedo and the launching vessel. A second retainer is located between the box and the launching vessel dispenser and is an elongate rod which is positioned substantially perpendicular to the launching direction of the vessel and has a channel along its length for receiving the wire and the channel having resilient lips for progressively releasing the wire upon launching of the torpedo. A third retainer is an elongated rod located substantially parallel to the launching direction of the vessel having a channel along its length for receiving the wire and the channel has resilient lips for progressively releasing the wire upon launching of the torpedo. A

splice is made within the box retainer which is of a larger size than the remainder of the wire which, upon launching of the vehicle rides along the outside of the resilient lips of the third retainer so as to facilitate the releasing of the wire therefrom. The retainers all cooperate to prevent entanglement of the wire within any area of the torpedo tube with the torpedo or the wire itself, however, to a lesser degree the wire can be prevented from becoming entangled by using the retainers individually.

An object of the present invention is to provide a device which will prevent the entanglement of a guidance wire connected between a launching vessel and a vehicle upon launching the vehicle.

Another object is to provide a device which will prevent the entanglement of a guidance wire connected to a torpedo and a launching vessel either with itself or the torpedo upon launching the torpedo from a tube within the launching vessel.

A further object is to provide a device which will prevent entanglement of a guidance wire connected between a vessel and a vehicle to be launched therefrom and yet cause substantially no restraint upon the wire after a successful launch has been achieved.

Still another object is to provide a device which will prevent entanglement of a guidance wire connected to a launching vessel and a vehicle to be launched therefrom and also permit the making of a splice of the wire.

Another object is to provide a splice chamber for aguidance wire between a launching vessel and a vehicle to be launched therefrom which will restrain any torsional set in the wire caused by the splice and pay the splice out upon launching of the vehicle so as to prevent any entanglement between the wire itself or the vehicle.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side view partially shown in cross section of the retainers and the torpedo within a launching tube;

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of some of the retainers in phantom and the guidance wire showing the various paths taken by the wire through the retainers;

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of the parallel rod retainer and supporting assembly with the rod and the assembly shown partially in cross section;

FIG. 4 is a cross section of the parallel rod retainer and guidance wire therein;

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of the box retainer and the perpendicular rod retainer;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the box retainer taken along line VI-VI of FIG. 5 with the lid closed;

FIG. 7 is an isometric view of the perpendicular retainer.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the perpendicular rod retainer with the guidance wire shown therein; and

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional side view of the perpendicular rod retainer taken along line IXIX of FIG. 8.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views there is shown in FIG. 1 a torpedo 10 having propellers 12 and a wire dispenser (not shown), the torpedo being in a launching position in a tube 14 of a launching vessel. Connected between a wire dispenser (not shown) of the launching vessel and the wire dispenser of the torpedo is a guidance wire 16 which extends (1) through a rod retainer 18 which is substantially normal to the launching direction of the torpedo, (2) through a box container 20, (3) adjacent to a magnetic clamp 22, and (4) through a rod retainer 24 which is located substantially parallel to the launching direction of the torpedo.

The box container 20 confines the guidance wire 16 to a portion of a loop or a bight 26, this bight of the wire having a splice 28 which is of a larger cross section than the remainder of the wire. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 the box container has a lid and a flat bottom 32, the lid and the bottom being spaced from one another when the lid is closed -at a distance which is slightly larger than the diameter of the guidance wire 16 so that when the spliced side of the bight is tugged by the torpedo after launch the remainder of the loop will slip out of the box container between the lid and the flat bottom. The box container 20 has a recess 34 which extends along three sides thereof, the recess along two of these sides being capable of receiving the wire 16 and the recess around a third side 35 being capable of receiving the splice 28. Further, the box has an open side 36 which allows the withdrawal of the guidance wire therefrom. The recess 34 and the lid 30 in conjunction with the bottom 32 form a chamber 38 having a width as shown in FIG. 6 which is Wide enough to prevent the resiliency or springiness of the wire from backtracking when the spliced side of the bight is withdrawn from the box retainer 20. Further, the width of the chamber 38 is to be narrow enough to cause the guidance wire 16 to be retained within the recess 34 at opposite sides of the box retainer 20 by the wires own springy action. Of course the design of the width of the chamber 38 will depend upon the degree of springiness of the guidance wire 16.

Located on the front face 40 of the box retainer 20 is the rod retainer 18, the details of which are shown in FIGS. 7 through 9. The rod retainer 18 is a resilient member having an elongate tubular-shaped channel 42, the channel having elongate lips 44. The width of the channel 42 is to be slightly larger than the diameter of the wire so as to allow its passage therethrough and the lips 44 are to be spaced from one another at a distance slightly less than the diameter of the wire so as to prevent the guidance wire 16 from leaving the channel 42 unless a force is directed toward the spacing between the lips as shown in FIG. 9. The spacing of the lips will of course depend upon the material used to construct the rod retainer 18 and accordingly if a very soft rubber were used the lips could feasibly be immediately adjacent one another. Control of the wire by the rod retainer 18 and confinement of the splice 28 to the chamber 38 in the box retainer 20 and the springy action of the wire due to the 180 turn within the chamber 38 all combine to keep the opposite sides of the bight in place at opposite sides of the chamber 38.

The rod retainer 24 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 has an elongate channel 46 with a pair of opposing lips 48. The width of the channel 46 is to be slightly wider than the diameter of the wire so as to allow its movement therealong and the lips 48 are to be spaced from one another at a distance which is slightly less than the diameter of the wire so as to allow the removal of the wire from the channel 46 when there is a sufficient force exerted on the wire toward the lips 48. The rod retainer 24 is fitted into a recess 50 of a base member 52 of the launching vessel and is held firmly in place by a dowel pin 54 which extends through the base member and into the rod retainer 24. The rod retainer 24 extends into a conduit 56, the conduit being a part of the torpedo and extending aft thereof. The rod retainer 24 is preferably constructed of a resilient material such as Teflon which has suflicient resiliency to maintain the wire within the channel 46 and yet slide with respect to the conduit 56 upon the launching of the torpedo.

In the operation of the device unconnected ends of the guidance wire 16 extend from the torpedo 10 and the launching vessel. These wires are connected together at the splice 28 and the wire is formed into the bight which is placed within the recess 34 of the box retainer 20. After the lid 30 is closed and the wire is disposed in the other retainers, the torpedo is then ready to be launched. Upon turning the propellers 12 to launch the torpedo a tremendous amount of turbulence is caused within the water in the tube 14, this water turbulence causing erratic forces of considerable magnitude upon the guidance wire aft of and around the torpedo. During this turbulent period the retainer wire is held in position within the retainers and as the torpedo begins to move the conduit 56 commences to slide free of the rod retainer 24. Because of the frictional forces between the retainers and the guidance wire and the restraint caused by the magnetic clamp 22 the guidance wire is first paid out from the wire dispenser within the torpedo 10. Payout of the guidance wire 16 from the torpedo is slow at the beg-inning of the launch and accordingly the payout tension is slight, however, after the torpedo clears itself from the launching vessel and reaches its operational speed the payout tension increases to a fairly steady and much higher value. This higher tension is transmitted without diminution through the rod retainer 24 to the magnetic clamp 22 to break the bond between the guidance wire 16 and the magnetic clamp 22 allowing the guidance wire to commence its freeing action from the retainers 24, 20 and 18. After the guidance wire 16 is freed from the magnetic clamp 22 the wire assumes an angle to the rod retainer 24 and the wire is pulled from the box retainer 20 so as to progressively decrease the bight of the wire within this retainer. The splice 28 accordingly travels out of the retainer 20 to the top and exterior of the rod retainer 24 and being of a larger size than the space between the lips 48 of the retainer it does not enter the channel 46 but rides along the exterior of the rod retainer 24 to expel the wire from the channel 46. Upon removal of the guidance wire 16 from the box retainer 20 the wire assumes an angle to the rod retainer 18 similar to that as shown in FIG. 9. When the wire assumes such an angle the force thereon is directed toward the spacing between the pair of lips 44 so as to progressively withdraw the wire 16 from the channel 42 of the retainer 18. Upon complete withdrawal of the guidance wire 16 from all of the retainers the wire is then paid out also from the wire dispenser within the launching vessel.

While the guidance wire 16 may be constructed of many types of materials it is contemplated in the preferred embodiment that it be made at least partially of a ferro-magnetic material (such as a braided iron sleeve encompassing a copper interior) so as to be held by the magnetic clamp 22 and that it have a resilient or springy action so as to cooperate with the box retainer 20.

It is now readily apparent that the present invention overcomes many troublesome problems of preventing a guidance wire from entangling on itself or a torpedo upon the launch of the torpedo from the launching vessel. By confining the guidance wire along predetermined paths during the turbulence caused by the launching of the torpedo, the wire is retained and prevented from entanglement and when the torpedo has been sufliciently launched the retainers progressively release the wire so as to cause the wire to be paid out from the dispenser within the launching vessel. By forming the wire into a loop or bight Within the box retainer 20 the ends of the wire from the dispensers of the torpedo and the launching vessel can be joined togther at a splice 28 and the torsional set due to the splice can be controlled by confining the bight to a unique chamber 38 within the box container 20.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.v

We claim:

1. An apparatus for preventing entanglement of a flexible line which is connected to a vehicle and is paid out from a dispenser when the vehicle is launched from a launching device, the line extending in a vicinity with respect to the vehicle where a turbulence is caused by the vehicle when the vehicle is launched, said apparatus comprising means located on the launching device between the dispenser and the vehicle for retaining a length of the line along a substantially straight course before and during the turbulence, said means including an elongate rod constructed of a resilient material and having a channel therealong, an inner portion of said channel having a cross section at least equal to a cross section of the line, and means for progressively releasing the line, said releasing means being an outer portion of said channel and including a pair of opposing lips spaced at a dimension less than a width of the line whereby the line can be retained within the inner portion of the channel until the vehicle tugs thereon and thereafter be progressively drawn from the inner portion of the channel through said lips.

2. An apparatus for preventing entanglement of a flexible line which is connected to a vehicle and. is paid out from a dispenser when the vehicle is launched from a launching device, the line extending in a vicinity with respect -to the vehicle where a turbulence is caused by the vehicle when the vehicle is launched, said apparatus comprising means located on the launching device between the dispenser and the vehicle for retaining a length of the line along a substantially straight course before and during the turbulence, said retaining means confining a portion of the line to at least a partial loop which is directed. so as to curve away from a launching direction of the vehicle, and a box for progressively releasing the line, said box having a chamber which has a depth at least as great as a cross-sectional width of the line, said box having three closed sides and one open side, the open side being adapted to receive the loop therethrough and a width of the box between two of the closed. sides being of a dimension so as to cause the line to be withdrawn from the box when tugged by the vehicle without backtracking any portion of the loop within the box.

3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the retaining means includes a continuous recess along the three closed sides of the box which is capable of receiving said line.

4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 3 including the line within the loop having an enlarged portion, a portion of the recess along one of the closed sides being capable of receiving the enlarged portion of said line, and the portion of the latter recess being on a side of the box where the line will receive a first tugging force from the vehicle.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the box has a raisable lid and the enlarged portion of the line is a splice whereby an operator can easily splice the line within said box.

6. An apparatus for protecting a flexible line connected at one end to a launchable vehicle and at the opposite end to a dispenser from snarls and entanglement when the vehicle is launched, comprising means between the vehicle and the dispenser for releasably forming the line into at least a portion of a loop which substantially curves away from a launching direction of the vehicle, means between the forming means and the dispenser for releasably retaining the line along a predetermined path which is substantially normal to the launching direction of the vehicle, and means between the forming means and the vehicle for releasably confining the line along a predetermined path which is substantially parallel to the launching direction of the vehicle whereby before launch of the vehicle the line is retained in defined paths and after launch the line is withdrawn from the forming means, the retaining means and the confining means without snarls or entanglement of the line with itself or with the vehicle.

7. An apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein the line is a wire having a degree of springy action upon being bent and is spliced within the forming means with the splice being of a larger dimension than the remainder of the wire, said forming means being a box having a top lid and a flat bottom, the box having a recess along three sides thereof with that part of the recess along two of the sides being at least as large as the cross section of the wire and the recess along the third side being at least as large as the cross section of the splice, the lid having an inside fiat surface which is spaced from the bottom at a dimension slightly larger than the cross section of the wire, the box being open at a fourth side so as to receive the partially-looped wire therethrough and the width of the box being such that when the wire is placed within the recess the springy action will hold the wire in place around said three sides of the box.

8. An apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein both retaining means are elongated members constructed of a resilient material and having a channel therealong, an inner portion of said channel having a cross section at least equal to a cross section of said wire and an outer portion of said channel having a pair of opposing lips spaced at a dimension less than a diameter of the wire whereby the wire can be retained within the inner portion of the channel until a force directs the wire against the outer portion at which time the lips, because of the resiliency of the material, spread apart to release the wire from each channel.

9. An apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein the vehicle has a conduit extending rearwardly thereof and the rod forming the retaining means which is substantially parallel to the launching direction of the vehicle has an outside diameter of a size adapted to slidingly engage an inside diameter of the conduit.

10. In a system wherein a torpedo is launched from a tube an apparatus comprising: a control wire connected at one end to the torpedo and connected at an opposite end to a dispenser on a launching vehicle, said wire being flexible and springy and having a splice of a larger dimension than the remainder of the wire, a box having a lid and a flat bottom, said box having a continuous recess along three inner sides thereof, the recess along a consecutive two of the sides receiving said wire and the recess along the third side receiving said splice, the lid. having an inside flat surface which is spaced from said "bottom at a distance slightly larger than the cross section of the wire, the box being open at a fourth side so as to allow the wire to be withdrawn from the box, the width of the box being such that the springy action of the wire will hold the wire in place around said three sides of the box, a first elongate member located between the box and the dispenser with its longitudinal axis substantially normal to the launching direction of the vehicle, a second elongate member located between the box and the vehicle with its longitudinal axis substantially parallel to the launching direction of the vehicle, both of said members having a channel therealong for receiving said wire, each of said members having a pair of opposing lips spaced from one another along each channel at a dimension less than a diameter of the wire, said lips being constructed of a resilient material so that the wire can be withdrawn from the channel of either member when a force is exerted on the wire transverse the member, the recess within said box lying in a plane which is spaced from and substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of said second member and the lips of said second member facing toward said plane, means located between the box and the second member for releasably holding the wire along a course which is substantially normal to the launching direction of the vehicle, whereby before launch the wire is retained with the splice located in said box and after launch the wire is first released by the holding References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 442,327 12/1890 Murphy 1l42=1 1,265,262 5/1918 Seymour 11421 8 1,457,983 6/1923 Malone .124-30 2,650,448 9/1953 Lichtig 24130 2,918,049 12/1959 Stockfieth 12430 FOREIGN PATENTS 409,538 2/ 1945 Italy.

BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner.

CHESTER L. JUSTUS, SAMUEL FEINBERG, Examiners.

A. E. HALL, T. A. ROBINSON, F. C. MATTERN,

P. A. SHANLEY, Assistant Examiners. 

1. AN APPARATUS FOR PREVENTING ENTANGLEMENT OF A FLEXIBLE LINE WHICH IS CONNECTED TO A VEHICLE AND IS PAID OUT FROM A DISPENSER WHEN THE VEHICLE IS LAUNCHED FROM A LAUNCHING DEVICE, THE LINE EXTENDING IN A VICINITY WITH RESPECT TO THE VEHICLE WHERE A TURBULENCE IS CAUSED BY THE VEHICLE WHEN THE VEHICLE IS LAUNCHED, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING MEANS LOCATED ON THE LAUNCHING DEVICE BETWEEN THE DISPENSER AND THE VEHICLE FOR RETAINING A LENGTH OF THE LINE ALONG A SUBSTANTIALLY STRAIGHT COURSE BEFORE AND DURING THE TURBULENCE, SAID MEANS INCLUDING AN ELONGATED ROD CONSTRUCTED OF A RESILIENT MATERIAL AND HAVING A CHANNEL THEREALONG, AN INNER PORTION OF SAID CHANNEL HAVING A CROSS SECTION AT LEAST EQUAL TO A CROSS SECTION OF THE 